THROUGH II I' .MA MTV TO OOU.
r Or. 4- Ar Berle.
It is sometime laid thst the existence
of God is not a matter iiseeuiible of
proof or that ucn proof would be unde
irable even if we could obtain it. It
is alao alleged that the Bible luumca
the existence of God and doe not, tb ore
fore, attempt to discus the matter le
garding it as among the res adjudlouta
of the spirit mil life. But both these state
mesta are Inexact. The Bible does not
nndertske aa an argument to prove the
existence of God, but it la filled with ar
guments which are addressed to the judg
ment only on the basis that it would re
quire reason for Hod's work and exer
ciae Judgment on the use of Ilia author
ity. Nor can it be alleged that uch
proof if we can find it, ia useless. The
t beat answer to thin ia that man has from
the dawn of the human intellect been try
ing to find such proof which would seem
to be good evidence that he regard such
proof as of value. The dimple assurance
of the existence and aupn-uie auth.irity
of God ia probably the one silicic force
which alone supports nil religion. All
doctrine and personalities and rit'j.ils
become useless and hollow uiiIcxh uud.'.'
Oeath and through them there abides this
one fundamental truth.
The fundamental inquiry of religious
men in our day may be imagined, then,
from the fact that this very doctrine, in
volving everything else has with all the
rest been laid under the searching scru
tiny of criticiKiu and interrogation. Where
Other ages have debated what kind of a
faith they should have ours has question
ed whether it should have any at all. At
other time men have doubted whether
a particular cult was divine or not: our
age has boldly dared to ask the (juration
whether there be any Supreme Head to
the world mid the human race.
Most of the argument in time past for
natural reason has gathered around
what ia called the argument from de
ign. The theologian and philosopher
Fsley furnished its characteristic illus
tration In the aymhol of the watch found
to the roadside which from its median
Urn and orderly adjustment of part to
part ahowing design proved a designer.
The world is such a mechanism, argued
be, and thus proves the existence of a
great designer whom we call God. The
late I)r. John Fiske, applying the doc
trine of evolution to the universe which
ahowed to be not a mechanism but nn
organism, took this o called teleologtcal
argument nnd substituted for Pslcy's
watch the lily, arguing that the unfulding
growth of a lily showed design as God
exercised it in the natural world far bet
ter than a thing of mechanical arrange
ment like a watch, but wag not less but
more the evidence of a purpose and '.here
fore of a mind governing and dir-cti.ig
thp affairs of nature and the world.
But tiic mind of man does not easily
rest its faith uhiii argument which can
not be Illustrated best out of bis own na
ture and experience. Hence by and by
the watch argument with its mechanism
began to lose interest. And now even
the attractive evolutionary statement of
the argument sounds tame and lifebss.
Nature is great, but human life is great
er. The organic world, with Its multi
tude of wonderful forms and changing
forces, is fascinating and often bewilder
ing. And for a time the mind can be
bewildered into resting in this kind of nn
argument. But sooner or later the mind
revolts and demands proof from within.
Nature's laws, after all. apply only to
man when man applies them. If he does
Dot like them he neutralizes them. lie
make night day and day night to suit
bis ends. He makes summer coot and
winter warm with device and appliauce,
and in a thousand ways shows that lif
ter all natural law, so often invoked as if
It were a finality in this world, is a thing
with which man take all kind of lib
erty. The only laws with which he cannot
take liberties are the Inner ones. And
ttii is true because, as Jesus taught, the
kingdom of God is within us, not without
us. What is less than God we can con
trol, because lie has given us charge of
It. But God Himself and His kingdom,
which He has written in the nature and
heart of man himself, must be and will
be obeyed.
Singularly economic by the increased
estimate under Christian Inspiration and
guidance which it has put upon man has
supplied the newest form of the jrgu
ment for the existence of God. .Man is
an economic animal, but one that reii
sous, thinks, has memory, can sufl'-r
through time and mingle in the present:
many intangible and mighty forces union ,
cannot be reduced to statistics. Thus
the spiritual valuations in man' life ,
bave acquired great economic importance.
It la of greater Importance that a man
hall feel that Justice is being donu than
that be shall have full dinner pail. The
full pall with conscious Injustice prevail
ing will never, ss It baa never, still the
auger and cupidity of man.
Itut where men under great trial have
torn reduced for Justice' sake to dire
trait, they have ihared and shared
gladly and uncomplainingly the utost
fueager fare. This wu because the man
was greater than hi work. It la the
plritual capacity of roan, so wonderful
III bia aspiration, so capable of sacrifice,
so divine In bl demand for the renlUa
tkm of lb most abstract spiritual ideaU,
Wis tbua himself prove end Illustrates
dial recsus be seeks these quallti"
eeea Incomplete In blmaelf In n eternal
nest for completeness there must be a
2nd resting place where tb faulty Jus
tic of Dsn become tbs perfect Justice
f Ood, where tbs fragmentary knowl
edge of man becomes the omniscience of
Ood and where the dirlded posrs of
Man are united In the omnipotence of
Ood aae where lbs Intermittent moods f
benevolence among men are mde whole
ad laal In the universal lovs of God
Man to hlmaelf the snbllms and unal
argument for Hod's existence, end the
Uad reached, m-t through mechanics or
alleaonbr. hat through maa kinueir. will
be the God of Jesus Christ revealing
Himself as Tower, Knowledge and Love.
MAKING THK MOST Oh' LIFK.
B Rev. H. R. Harrlt.
They who live longest do not necessar
ily make the most of life. Long life ia
desirable provided the years are all tilled
with that which is good. But an empty
Ji' cannot be redeemed friii- vanity by
length of days. A life Ulled with good
fruit is better than a long life. Jesus,
who made more of life than any other,
did not live long. His life was cut short
by violence while He was yet a young
man. A life poured out in blood for the
sake of righteousness is far better spent
than one which luis been carefully guard
ed uud preserved even down to old age at
the expense of righteousness and truth.
In order to make the most of life it may
be necessary to lay it down as a sacrifioe.
One who finds most pleasure does net
necessarily make the most of life. Some
think there is nothing better in the world
than to have what they call a good time.
They count that day lost which does not
bring them some social delight or worldly
gratification. But all wise men agree
thut mere pleasure should be sacrificed to
some higher good. They who live in
pleasure are dead while they live. Jesun,
whose life was a perfect model, never rau
after pleasure. We do not know that
He ever sought it for a moment- It w as
His meat and drink to do His Father's
wil and linish the work which was given
Him to do. The joy of a good conscience
and the approval of the heavenly Father
are infinitely superior to all worldly pleas
ure.
The man who makes the most money
docs not always make the most of life.
Money is not to be despised nor thrown
away. Money is a means of great good
when properly used. But "a man's lifo
consisteth not In the abundance of the
things he possesgeth." A millionaire may
live a narrow and unsatisfactory life.
Ilia millions will be a millstone about
his neck unless they are used for Nome
good purpose in the world. It is better
far to be rich in good works, rich in
faith, rich toward God, rich in character,
than to be rich ill gold and silver.
It is thought by some that learning
is the thing that makes life rich and
grand. But one may be learned without
making much of life. Learning is n good
thing. The study of science affords won
derful satisfaction. Few things contrib
ute more to the enrichment of life than
i well-stored and well-disciplined mind.
But knowledge and learning nre not the
principal tilings. Some men are wiser
and stronger without learning than others
;ire with it. Jesus was not a learned
man according to the standards of this
world; yet when He opened His mouth
ind spake such streams of truth and wis
dom proceeded from His enlightened
mind that Ilis learned enemies said.
"Whence hath this mnn these things, nev
er having learned?" l'eter and John were
unlearned fishermen, yet they made rhe
world richer by (Tielr wisdom. John Hun
van was not n learned man according to
the standards of this world, yet what sci
entist or philosopher ever did so much as
ha to enlighten the world? The wisdom
that cometh from above is superior to the
wisdom of this world. It is not the sci
entist, but the saint, that lives that life
which is life indeed. It is not the philoso
pher, but the Christian, that Is the light
of the world. It is not the scholar, but
the good man, that make the most of
life.
THK m:sx'rrixo SIN.
By Her, J. H MacDonald, D. D.
According to the teaching of Jesus the
commandments enjoin two eternal duties
love to God and love to our fellow men.
The first has been emphasized ill nil sges.
The second has been largely overlooked
or looked upon as an impossible thing.
The tenth commandment ia in the main
a dead letter, although it strikes at the
greatest of sins selfishness.
Selfishnes is the basis of all the
wrongs of society. It refuses to acknowl
edge the goodness of God and His right
to command, since it denies the fact that
his bounty was given for all men, and
presumptuously thrusts itself between a
kind Father and needy children.
A place to stand upon 1 a necessary
to man as the air he breathe. A private
control of nature's reservoirs means slav
ery. If I own a piece ot property on
which meii sre compiled to live, nnd
have the power to maintain my claim, I
own the men. They must do as I say, or
die.
The divine right to control coal rfclds
Iocs not differ essentially from the divine
richt to coin nd negroes, ,'fliis selfishness..
while fearing socialism. Is driving the
nation headlong towards it. Every evil
condition of society has its roots In self
ishness. CIILIUH MVht All I'M fc; I'OOM.
By Rev. Edwrd Jul ton, D, D.
The story of the good Samaritan 1 the
keynote of the coming religion, and
through it we can learn how to handle s
person in distress.
Chiirche must come down Trotu their
lofty position and strive to better the
conditions of the lower classes. I should
be glad to see that wherever a church
lifts It spire around it there ihould be a
guide, a It were, of philanthropic Inst!
tutions for the care of the poor, the old
slid the friendless. The church ia not a
place where people are to worship, but
where they may leant to be good and
kind to others. If the churcb shows this
Interest In men It will come about thai
the working-man going by the great struc
ture will feel bis heart soften aa when
he passes some great hospital where lie
the halt and the lame of all claaaea.
The parable answers three questions)
First, who Is our neighbor: second, how
to be neighborly, and, third, bow to In
herit eternal life.
Pleasure. There la widespread feel
Ing that there la something degrading
and unworthy In a life of pleasure, and
tbat If we get Into the current we will
be awept Into the abyss further than we
Intended to go. Plesetire la ustlfled Juat
to the extent tbat It rejuvenates. We
are least successful In the management
of our pleasures. We work at such a
pressure that when the time for work
(a over we seek relaiat'on without any
thought as to whether It will be helpful
to ua or not. Dr. rail AdJer, BthiaaJ
Culture, Mew York.
NEW OUTPUT OF FURS
CONTRA8T OF COLOR AND VA
RIETY INDULGED IN.
Vail-Length Fur Garments Are Bo
Heavy tbat They Furnish a Good Ex
cuse for Not Having Theui and Slake
Stole Keck Pieces Very Popular.
Sew fork correspondence:
UCH contrast of
color is indulged for
the street this win
ter, and few stylish
gowna are .seen that
have not a bit of
color somewhere us
piping, cording or
lining for the fancy
trimming of galloon,
braid or lace. It
seem odd to find
this idea carried
into furs and heavy
coats, but if you
keep your eyes open
you aurely will find
it impressively ap
parent among swag
ger garments. Even
the more sober furs
that one would class
is least adaptable to colored trimmings
lave these touches. An example was a
hree-quarter length coat of Persian lamb.
i'his fur always seems very dignified end
es adapted to frivolous turns of fashion
thun many newer skins, yet in this in-
FROM THE FUliUIEIt'S NEW OUTPUT.
stance it was trimmed with black silk
braid woven loosely so that a three-inch
Mrip of green velvet showed under the
braid. This trimming appeared in the
collar as an insertion and again in the
sleeves at the wrists. It was handsome
and in a way a greater extravagance in
fur than a plain coat of Persian lamb
would be, for the color made it impo.ssi
blt as an accompaniment of gowns of
some, colors, so made more than one fur
garment a necessity. At the left in to
day's first pictured group is a scheme
very often resorted to for bringing color
to the fur coat. Here it consisted of
stole finish in dark green broadcloth em
broidered in black silk cord. The fur
iMis seal. In the garment of the initial
picture was a less positive but equally
htylish response to the fashion, in a belt
of milaiiese lace over bright green vel
vet, this on a squirrel coat with ermine
collar. On garments that combine two
or more furs showily, and ermine always
is showy, bright colors are not used so
often or so freely ss on one-fur pieces.
The excess of weight In full-length furs
supplies nn oft repeated excuse for not
appearing in a fur coat of latest types.
it's so heavy, a stole neck pleoe la eo '
ouch better suited to our climate, and
111 mat, uui many a time ine maser or
men excuse would be vastly pleased
o possess the more ex penal v article,
i'et the saving isn't so much ss It would
sve been Inst season or any one of many
inters before, because the really fine
eck piece la very costly. Stole shape
re followed, not a few of tbetn so long
to drag on the ground If they allp ever
o little ok way or the other,
But tbat 1
gWAOQBH 8UITH FPU CALH.NU.
does not seem to trouble tie wear.!
Then if one costir for doesn't call foil
sufficient outlay, a second one may be
added lor lining, rhi type of garment
appear in the left-band stole of the two
pictured. It was Itussian sable lined
with ermine. The other, of wolf, was
high grade, too, this fur rating juat now
a a very stylish oue. The general be
comingness of these long neck pieces is a
second argument In their favor. They
add height to dumpy women, and set off
excessive height to advantage. If only
they didn't leave one' arms so out in the
cold, much could be said of their protec
tive value. In feather neck wear the
stole is very pretty, especially in white
feathers for evening.
The value in dressiness of fine laces
is very hjgb and ; it Js yry freely used,.
Whole lace gow ns, lace jackets over silk,
lace flounces, lace trimmings, lace col
lars and every combination of lace known
are in style. So no matter bow small
your piece of lace is, if it is the real thing,
just trot it out and gloat over your less
fortunate neighbor. The stores show
what ia styled new patterns in the eld
laces, and many of them are exquisite
and not easy to distinguish from tbo real
old. Still there is great satisfaction In
knowing that what one ia wearing has
genuine age. The owner of an old lace
shawl may, without very difficult schem
ing, use it as part of the drapery of a
gown, and without cutting or in any way
spoiling it for use as a sbawl, if that
style should return.
Novelties in trimmings are making
headway iu street dress. Witness, as un
example
bunches of grapes applied in
showy quantity
The design is made of
: round wooden button mould covered
with cloth or silk and arranged in grape
clusters. The stem is of narrow strips of
the cloth or silk to which the grapes
seem to be fastened. This is sometimes
in the same material as the dress, again
Is in different material and color. The
clusters are from three to four inches
long nnd some two inches wide, so they
stand out very distinctly.
With such ornamentation creeping Into
street dress, it is natural to expect ex
treme dressiness in calling gowns. This
expectation is fully realized, though not
always through elaborate mediums. The
three calling costumes the artist grouped
were representative of the plain richness
of this grade of woman's attire. First
is a white broadcloth, with milaiiese lace
trimming the wrap. The hat was a white
furry felt trimmed with black feathers.
Next this is a black velvet costume, with
sleeve puffs and front of white gau.o,
lace collar and black velvet hat. Last
comes a blue dotted velveteen, the strap
trimmings edged with light green velvet.
front and turn-over light green cloth em
broidered In heavy white silk. Muff and
hat were squirrel fur. When elaborate
ness is attempted In calling suits, it may
be carried to the extreme of fsnclfnlneae,
but gowna of the pictured grade are a
majority,
Delicate pink coral la brought eat In
brooches, bar and itick plna and la bell
buckles to match the neck chains from
India' atrand.
Neck cbalna do Dot now bang U the
waist line, aa In the summer, but almuls
loosely encircle tbe Beck.
a . 4,4,. 4,4. j,t , Ut44il
T
! t C O O D
4
j Short Qtorie$;
I I I M M I I 'M I
John Chalmers, the missionary
friend of Itobert Louis Stevenson, and
tvery inch a man, once telegraphed to
England: "Getting In trim for next
season. Ask Jones send one gross
tomahawks, one gross butchers'
knives. Going East, try make friends
between tribes." London was con
vulsed over the missionary's peculiar
way of promoting friendship with the
New Guinea cannibals.
On one occasion Charles Burleigh,
the great opponent of the slave trade,
was In the middle of one of his elo
quent denunciations of slavery when
a well-aimed and very rotten egg
struck him full In the face. "This,"
he said, calmly, as he produced his
handkerchief and wiped his face, "Is
a striking evidence of what I have
always maintained, that pro-slavery
arguments are unsound."
A story Is told of the late Professor
Knell, of Amherst College, which re
lates how he once asked for a defini
tion of the solar corona from a mem
ber of bis class in astronomy. The
young man, after a good deal of hesi
tation, and a dread consciousness of
Impending failure, plunged desperate
ly into the statement that he did know
what the corona was but had forgot
ten. The Professor turned to his class
with a tragic gesture, "What an In
calculable loss to science!" be exclaim
ed, with emotion; "that the only man
who ever knew what the sun's corona
is has forgotten!"
According to the New York Tribune,
Secretary Moody, during the Presi
dent's recent visit In New England, on
more thnn one oceusiou Impersonated
his chief. Passing throut;u the nu
merous New England villages that
were close together. It became some
what of a tusk for the President to
show himself and greet the crowd at
every station. The resemblance of the
'Secretary of the Navy to the Presi
dent in height, build, and general
(physical appearance, offered a plan by
Iwliieh Mr. Ilooscvelt could be rested.
.Mr. Moody, donning a high sliU hat,
putting on a pair of eye-glasses, and
buttoning a frock coat tightly across
his chest, would repair to the rear
platform, lift his hat, and smiling
bow right and left to the throngs as
the train passed slowly along.
In an article of reminiscences, Mary
Stuart Boyd says that the late Bret
illarte never obtruded his personality,
'lie also had a dread of people regard
ling him for his work only, not for him
self. "Why didn't you tell me It was
Bret Harte who sat next me at din
ner last night?" wailed one of society's
smartest young matrons, in a note to
her hostess, the morning after a large
Sdinner party; "I have always longed
to meet him, and I would have been
so different had I only known who
my neighbor was." "Now why can't
a woman realize that this sort of
thing Is Insulting?" queried the author,
to whom the hostess had forwarded
;iier friend's letter; "If Mrs. talked
with ine, and found me uninteresting
ins a man, how could she expect to
And me Interesting because I was an
author?"
SOFT-COAL EVIL IN ENGLAND.
Smoke- Lodcu Air Costs People Minimis
Ycurly uml Jnjurei Health.
Evil us is the smoke situation lu
New York, London and t lie larger
English cities sutler to an even greater
ixtent, for there the atmospheric
moisture is greater. It has been con
clusively demonstrated by distin
guished British scientific authorities
That the smoke nuisance Is responsible
'or the density and ghastly foulness of
:he nauseating fog known as the "Lou
Jon particular," which enfolds the
Uritsh metropolis In an Impenetrable
ihroud.
In the London museum fhere Is ex
hibited what appears to be an elong
ated sponge sodden with black dye,
but what Is In reality a lung, beating
l.ilcnt but forceful testimony to the
polluting woik of the all-pervaditig soft
conL
For some years fitful attempts have
been made to combat the evil or nt
least to reduce the output of the deadly
soot, but 1 lie consistently apathetic
attitude of the average Englishman to
all matters pertaining to the public
welfnie has greatly retarded the en
deavors of the little baud of scien
tists nnd medicos who have been ear
nestly striving to Impress the nation
with the deadllncss of the ever-present
peril
The Smoke Abatement Society has
done something to lighten the national
darkness In that respect and to awaken
the people to a realization of the dan
ger which menaces them, and the ordl
oancea of some city, town and district
councils now regulnte the volume of
smoke from factory stacks, and fn
many places manufacturers, masterful
ly Indifferent to the well-being of the
people and Impatient of restraint, have
been encouraged by (he gentle per
suasion of heavy, and In some cases re
pent) d llnps to terminate, between eer
lain hours, the black, thick belching
1 nd to Instill) expensive smoke-consuming
furnaces.
The curtailment of the volume of
unoke, the limiting of the hours In
which stacks may vomit their black
ttrenms and the mixing of hard and
i-oft coal are only alleviation of that
evil, the wile curt. for which Is tbe ut-
er prohibit Ion of the nae of soft coal
xoept In furnaces which "eat" their
1 wn smoke.
The burning of soft coal la eatlma
-1
ted to cost London millions af doOaw
a year. It neeeBHftatee tbe wboleaala
"week-end" outings of the peoptwj
which are so surprising a feature ot
London Life, driving millions Into th
country between Saturday and Monday
to get a breath of fresh air; it com
pels every householder to employ two
servants in place of oue to keep the
rooms and curtains clean, and it makea
necessary the repainting of houses and
buildings at least every two or three
years, besides ruining furniture, de
stroying valuable pictures and causing
an Immense expenditure for the wash
ing of linen.
Both above and beyond all these,
says the- New York-Times, ia the la- -Jury
to public health resulting from
the constant inhalation of smoke-laden
air. The typical Londoner strikes on
American visitor as pale and under
sized, and those who have studied the)
subject attribute the degeneracy of the,
race of metropolitan cave-dwellers to
i nothing so much as the shutting off
of sunlight and the burdening of the
atmosphere by the fumes from soft
coal.
SPEAKING OF SOUP.
How It Was Served in a Frimitiv
Oerman Hostelry.
"Speaking of soup," said a prominent
musician who has traveled over a good
part of the earth, to the New Orleans
Times-Democrat, "reminds me of an ex
perience I had some years ago while In
one of the provinces of Germany. I bad
stopped over In a small town for a day
or two and was at the best hotel In tbe
place. This is not saying a great deal,
fur the patronage did not justify any
thing like gorgeousness in the matter
of service or in the kind and character
of the food furnished the guests. Tlw
proprietor, at any rate, was doing th
best that he could, and, no doubt, I
would have got along all right but" for
the peculiar method they employed la
serving soup. I have never seen the,
method employed In any other place,
and, to be candid about It, I have not
been 011 the lookout for the unique way
of serving the first number on the
menu. The first intimation I had of
the curious practice was when a big,
heavy Hollander, with a husky voice,
who had rushed up behind me, asked,
'Soup?' 'Yes,' I replied, and before I
knew what had happened he bad
squirted the soup out into my plate. I
was surprised and shocked and not a
! little puzzled at first, because I did not,
know how the waiter had managed to
squirt, the soup Into my plate so quick
ly. I had expected him to bring my
soup In the usual way, in a plate.
But he shot the soup over my shoulder
before the echo of the 'ja' had left my
lips. I watched him make the round
of the table. He had the soup in a
receptacle of some sort that looked
like a cross between a bagpipe audi
something else, and It worked with a
suction-rod arrangement If a guest
wanted soup he would press the rod
and the liquid would squirt out into the
plate. It was Interesting enough, but,
to save my life, I couldn't eat the soup,
and, iu fact, I couldn't eat anything
else in the place. I suppose it was all
right, but I simply couldn't stand for
it, and when I left the place I was neap
ly starved."
SHE MIXED THE ORGANS.
Why the Beguara' Instruments Bora
the Wron- tUcns.
Visitors to Blackpool recently were
much puzzled by an old woman who
was playing a barrel organ.
At one end of this Instrument she
had pasted this notice:
"Help the blind."
Beneath this appeared a second ap
peal: "I am the father of seven motherless
children."
The old woman wore a pair of blue
spectacles, behind which her eyes were
completely hidden.
A few streets farther on the mystery
of the inscription was cleared up, for
there sat an old man turning music out
of another organ, as dilapidated as tha
one whoso faint strains could almost
be heard from up the street
He, too, wore glasses, and his organ
bore this legend:
"Help the blind."
And under It:
"I am the mother of seven fatherless
children."
A man stepped up to him and said:
"Look here, my friend, the next time
you go out you had better get the right
label on your organ."
The grinder must have guessed what
the error was, says Tit-Bits, for push
ing the glasses back from his eyes, he
peered quickly up and down the street
as If looking for a policeman.
Seeing none, be leaned over and read
the sign:
"That's the old woman all over," n.
muttered, replacing tbe glasses and
turning bia Instrument to leave; "she'a
mixed them blooming organs vy
agalu."
No Fnch Lock.
"I aea tbat a pugilist waa killed re
cently In a alugglng match."
"Well, that la not defense of tb
aport."
"Well I should say not Ton aee "
"You aee we can hope for tbe same
happy result all the time," Baltimore
Herald.
Jast m Trial
"So yon are really going to marry,"
aid tbe first Chicago girl.
"Yea," replied the other. "I thought
I would for a while." Philadelphia
Press.
Mao mntt but tittle ben bekrw
but woaaaa wants a Itttla of every
thing. It la homaa aature to be nnaraiafsul
to the maa who flghta roar tattle te
ya aad awta Mokad.
I'
I.
O'
